above: The Grand Prize winning entry in the National Gingerbread Competition featured Christmas-themed Russian Nesting Dolls by Heather Lewis.
Many gingerbread competitions feature some very amateur creations - unimpressive gumdrop laden homes with leaning chimneys, doghouses and lighthouses with lame landscaping and the like. But not the National Gingerbread Competition, which celebrated its 18th annual competition this year at the Grove Park Inn.
The impressive event garnered entries from 20 states and is not limited to "houses" but instead any gingerbread creation that falls within their guidelines. The competition is broken down into Adult, Teen, Youth and Child categories, all of which had several drool-worthy entries. These aren't for Gingerbread House kit-types, we're talking some serious gingerbread baking enthusiasts and fondant masters. Take a look at the winners in each category as well as the top ten adult entries.
ADULT CATEGORY
ADULT, Grand Prize Winner - Heather Lewis of Austell, Georgia (image at the beginning of the post)
ADULT, 1st Place Winner - Angel Adkins of Kodak, Tennessee:
ADULT, 2nd Place Winner -Barbara Evans of Edelstein, Illinois:
ADULT, 3rd Place Winner - Linda Carney of Asheville, North Carolina:
ADULT, TOP TEN - Ashley Howard of Winter Springs, Florida:
ADULT, TOP TEN - Tracy Navin of Franklin, Tennessee:
ADULT, TOP TEN - Suzanne Kanaly of Liberty Township, Ohio:
ADULT, TOP TEN - Ann Bailey of Cary, North Carolina:
ADULT, TOP TEN - Cathy Christiansen of Gainesville, Virginia:
ADULT, TOP TEN - Michael Billella of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma:
TEEN CATEGORY
TEEN, 1ST PLACE WINNER - Skyla Delerme of Asheville, North Carolina:
Teen 2nd Place - Carly Owens of Swannanoa, North Carolina:
Teen 3rd Place - Laura Malanowski of Newton, North Carolina:
YOUTH CATEGORY
YOUTH, 1ST PLACE WINNER - Lydia Gentry of Hendersonville, North Carolina:
Youth 2nd Place - Gabriella Arthur of Easley, South Carolina:
Youth 3rd Place - Emily Spafford of Maryville, Tennesee:
CHILD CATEGORY
CHILD, 1ST PLACE WINNER - Christian Ray of Charlotte, North Carolina
Child 2nd Place - Shan Patel of Asheville, North Carolina:
Child 3rd Place - Grace Lebo of Nashville, Tennessee:
above photos courtesy of Wright Creative
Each year there are several Gingerbread House competitions that take place in various countries and cities. One of the more popular, but not quite as professional, is the one sponsored by This Old House. 2010 was their third annual competition and you can view those 84 entries here